Linked by Imogen Howson

Goodreads Blurb

Elissa used to have it all: looks, popularity, and a bright future. But for the last three years, she’s been struggling with terrifying visions, phantom pains, and mysterious bruises that appear out of nowhere. 
Finally, she’s promised a cure: minor surgery to burn out the overactive area of her brain. But on the eve of the procedure, she discovers the shocking truth behind her hallucinations: she’s been seeing the world through another girl’s eyes. 
Elissa follows her visions, and finds a battered, broken girl on the run. A girl—Lin—who looks exactly like Elissa, down to the matching bruises. The twin sister she never knew existed. 
Now, Elissa and Lin are on the run from a government who will stop at nothing to reclaim Lin and protect the dangerous secrets she could expose—secrets that would shake the very foundation of their world. 

So I seem to like linking tweets in my reviews. I should do this more often.
So here are things I tweeted while reading Linked. Excuse any...French words.
https://twitter.com/Nikki_Wang/status/347504532466589697
https://twitter.com/Nikki_Wang/status/347505832214282240
https://twitter.com/Nikki_Wang/status/347506627047473152
https://twitter.com/Nikki_Wang/status/347506702343618560

So, despite my tweets, I do have a few mixed feelings on Linked, especially on our main character, Elissa. While she was easy to relate to and had, by far, the most realistic reaction to finding out you had a secret abused twin, she also had a lot of downsides. Sometimes I felt like she was unsympathetic towards Lin, chastising her when Lin just didn't know any better and other times I felt like she just seemed so selfish (though that was rare). She also seemed super impulsive and very trusting, though I can't say Lin's paranoia was that better! But Howson did manage to create a realistic character who acted like a real teen!
On that note, the author managed to perfectly capture the attitude of an abused escapee who had next to no knowledge of the outside world. Lin was a character that we could sympathize with and she sort of reminded me of a (powerful) lost puppy who just wanted to be loved.

So I had no idea, going into this, that Linked was dystopian. Or Sci-fi. Or anything other than a thriller, actually! I have no idea how I missed that! So imagine my surprise when I discovered a world at least a thousand years into the future with other planets, planet ranks, and outstanding worldbuilding. The descriptions were vivid, though sometimes unneeded. (I felt a bit irritated that we had a two sentence description on lemon meringue pie, then neglected to learn how certain fake IDs, which would come in handy in the future, worked).

There was also a bit of an info dump in the first half of the book and it was a bit slow for me, but *SEMI SPOILER* once we got on the airship, things got a lot more interesting, a lot faster. I was absolutely riveted by then and practically screamed my head off at a giant twist. Several actually, none that I was expecting. It absolutely ripped my heart out. (Such a cruel cruel world.)

There's barely any romance and what we do have is one that's actually pretty sudden after years of hate (and secret, denied love). I'll admit, it was sort of awkward, but I couldn't help but giggle and "Awww" at a certain romantic part. What can I say? I'm a sucker for confessions.

Unpredictable and stunning, Linked makes readers think about humanity and how we can make an ultimate sacrifice when it's called for. While slow at first, this is definitely a book I'd recommend to sci-fi fans and anyone who loves a twisted plot that'll leave you gasping and wanting more.

Pages: 368
Genre: Dystopian/Sci-fi
Series: Linked #1
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Release Date: June 11, 2013
Rating: 3.5-->4 stars

Starglass by Phoebe North

Goodreads Blurb

Terra has never known anything but life aboard the Asherah, a city-within-a-spaceship that left Earth five hundred years ago in search of refuge. At sixteen, working a job that doesn't interest her, and living with a grieving father who only notices her when he's yelling, Terra is sure that there has to be more to life than what she's got.
But when she inadvertently witnesses the captain's guard murdering an innocent man, Terra is suddenly thrust into the dark world beneath her ship's idyllic surface. As she's drawn into a secret rebellion determined to restore power to the people, Terra discovers that her choices may determine life or death for the people she cares most about. With mere months to go before landing on the long-promised planet, Terra has to make the decision of a lifetime--one that will determine the fate of her people.

Starglass completely and utterly destroyed my expectations. I wasn't quite sure what to expect--it reminded me of Across the Universe and it seemed a bit typical. But, it really, really, wasn't. 

I'm not quite sure where to start with this review! I loved pretty much everything about it, but I guess what stood out the most was the fact that we're never sure, exactly, who the good guys are until the very end. And I've been waiting forever for that kind of book. Usually we're always so sure of who's the good guy and who's the bad guy, but the lines are blurred in this book which definitely made the entire book more intriguing!

The plot was absolutely genius too. I EXPECTED NOTHING. And the twist in the romance. OHMERGERD. I NEVER saw that coming! The twists were so startling--I about died from shock. There were a thousand twists but nothing was ever too fast-paced or too sudden. It maintained a steady pace that makes readers desperate to know what happens next, but afraid to accidentally miss something.There were so many betrayals and losses that I actually teared up, too. I really am a crybaby!

I loved our main character, though she did tend to trust and judge quickly. She was such a wonderful kind of character who was so real. She had such a hard life and she developed a strong personality, but still managed to stay sweet at times, and understanding. She was a relatable character who's easy to connect to throughout the book and so completely lovable! She was looking for somewhere where she belonged, someone she belonged to. It was so bittersweet.

The romance was very...complicated. Very. There were two guys, yes, but trust me. It was far from a love triangle. And then, at the end...well. Let's just leave it at complicated. Let me just say that I love Silva! Sort of. He was such a, well, teen. And I can say no more. But where it concerns the romance, you're going to be shell shocked, trust me.

I loved the world of the Asherah! We didn't really focus on the world or the ship, but what we did see was well thought out and well detailed. The ship was vivid in my mind and I could see every little nook. I have to hand it to North--she knows how to show not tell!

There's pretty much nothing wrong with Starglass and I loved every second! I read this completely in one sitting from when I woke up all the way to dinner without stop! It was captivating, engaging, and a beautiful read I wouldn't mind reading over and over again until it's my turn to jump on a spaceship to a planet! Which I hope is a good bit from now.

Pages: 448

Genre: Dystopian/Sci-fi

Series: Starglass #1

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Release Date: July 23, 2013

Rating: 5 stars